We never, never discuss injuries on this board. Period. No exceptions. This is at the request of the Davidson College administration and I am happy to comply.

The same applies to an athlete's grades or academic standing.

No cussin'. There are lots of kids on this board and we aim to keep it clean.

No personal attacks of any kind - this includes personal messages.

Violate these rules and your posts will be removed. Violate repeatedly or just really make us mad and we may ban you._________________"I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf and the designated hitter."
Crash Davis

Recently, there has been a minor dust-up on the board about an off-topic post. As one of the parties involved (I was the off-topic poster), I want to make a point. I choose to make it here, on the Board Rules thread, because it is obviously on-topic here. How many people will see it here (or care if they do), I don't know, but I'll post it anyway.

I believe that the society on this board functions much like the Lunar society did in Robert A. Heinlein's SF novel The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. In this book, set in the not-too-distant future, the moon is a penal colony. Most of the colonists are not convicts, either because they have served their sentences or were simply born there, of transportee parents. The colony has no laws, only the Warden's regulations. Strictly speaking, the Warden has no authority over the non-convicts, but as a practical matter, his bodyguards are the only armed force on the moon. However, to almost everything the colonists do among themselves, the Warden remains blissfully unconcerned.

The behavior of the colonists is subjected to a number of constraints. First come the physical realities of living on the moon. Next come the few restrictions imposed by the Warden, through main force. Finally, there are the customs that this society has developed over time to fit the social realities of their situation.

I could go on for a great while about this book, my favorite book by my favorite author, but I guess I should get to the point. If you're interested enough, read it - it's an award-winner, probably still in print, and certainly available from many libraries. And there's plenty of discussion about it on the internet.

Getting back to the question, why do I think DavidsonCats.com functions like the society in the book? Well, the moderators operate like particularly benign Wardens. They police their rules, and have ultimate power when it comes to enforcing them. But they rarely choose to exercise that power; they are content to let the inmates make and enforce a code of behavior on the board.

In my particular case, I made (and acknowledged) an off-topic post (during the summer off-season) that I thought would be of interest to a subset of D-Cats posters. This proved to be correct. However, one poster objected, somewhat strenuously. Perhaps my behavior was such that I deserved his opprobrium. But I submit my actions to the community at large. Have I violated the Customs of the Board?

Edited one time, to correct a typo and to improve my choice of words._________________Mene Mene Tekel Upharsin

Last edited by WildCock on Sun Jul 24, 2011 4:49 pm; edited 1 time in total

No, sir, you have not violated the Customs of the Board. In fact, you followed them precisely. We all know that the men's basketball section gets the most views. When we have something that we want everyone to see, most of us post it in men's basketball. If it catches fire, we'll eventually move it to another section of the board. I also think that most folks understand that summer customs differ from in-season customs. Carry on._________________"McKillop is a gentleman. He could have played 'name that score' if he so desired."---St Joe's fan

WildCock, I share your pain. The fastidiousness of a number of commentators in objecting to threads on the basis of non-germaneness often leaves me perplexed, my lack of understanding leading me to feel like a Stranger in a Strange Land. I can only compare my feelings of disconnection to an experience I once had in a movie theater when viewing "The Natural", starring Robert Redford. At the climatic scene, with the ballpark lights exploding everywhere, I started to laugh out loud, until I looked around to see a goodly number in the audience fighting back tears. Talk about a feeling of isolation, indeed.

Now, turning to the governance of societies, let me quote my own favorite Heinlein observation on the human condition in a communal setting:

"Bread and Circuses is the cancer of democracy, the fatal disease for which there is no cure. Democracy often works beautifully at first. But once a state extends the franchise to every warm body, be he producer or parasite, that day marks the beginning of the end of the state. For when the plebs discover that they can vote themselves bread and circuses w/o. limit and that the productive members of the body politic cannot stop them, they will do so, until the state bleeds to death ..."

Be assured, I am not advocating that only Davidson grads be allowed to vote. My point is that to be a responsible citizen, one needs to have skin in the game. And those who get the Davidsoncats ChatRoom for free, should run for Board Administrator before they seek to censure threads.

Forgive the language_________________Davidson shot through the college hoops world in a flash in 2008. But long before it did, its coach poured his life's work into the place. That work is ongoing, and McKillop is as good now as he's ever been.